Through the corporate-funded American Legislative Exchange Council, global corporations and state politicians vote behind closed doors to try to rewrite state laws that govern your rights. These so-called "model bills" reach into almost every area of American life and often directly benefit huge corporations. ALEC is the heart and soul of the GOP.

Bear Market Economics (Issues and News)

Monday, April 8, 2013

Laws to Criminalize Documentation of Animal Abuse on Farms Now Considered by Nine States

“In
the past, whistleblowers (not farm owners or inspectors) have
documented baby chicks being ground up alive, workers urinating near a
live hanging area, and turkeys and pigs being sexually abused.
Investigators caught a major school lunch meat supplier abusing cows who
were too sick to even walk; this lead to the largest meat recall in
US history. The Big Ag industry desperately want to put a stop to
these investigations for one reason: money.” Will Potter

Other countries, including Canada, don’t have much in the way of laws
to protect their citizens when concerned individuals document animal
abuse in the workplace – and if regressive legislation passes, neither
will the U.S.

Canadian whistleblower Phil Demers faces a multimillion dollar lawsuit (find out more at The Orca Project)

(The following was derived from the original petition by Will Potter, see below)

“Undercover investigations have exposed patterns of horrific animal
welfare abuses on factory farms and slaughterhouses, and led to
criminal convictions and public health investigations. Rather than
addressing these problems, a powerful organization called the American
Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) wants to criminalize anyone who
brings animal abuse to light.

I [Will Potter] have documented this extensively in my many years of
journalism about the repression of animal and environmental advocates.
You can read more about ALEC at GreenIsTheNewRed.com. ALEC
wants to make it a crime to document patterns of animal abuse. It
thinks the solution is to have zero checks and balances on this huge
industry, and leave it up to factory farms and slaughterhouses to
regulate themselves.

In the past, whistleblowers (not farm owners or inspectors) have
documented baby chicks being ground up alive, workers urinating near a
live hanging area, and turkeys and pigs being sexually abused.
Investigators caught a major school lunch meat supplier abusing cows who
were too sick to even walk; this lead to the largest meat recall in US
history. The Big Ag industry desperately want to put a stop to these
investigations for one reason: money.

This bring us to “ag-gag” bills which target whistleblowers,
undercover investigators, and journalists. They have been introduced in 9
states this year, and last year they became law in 3 states. Some go
so far as to criminalize anyone who “possesses” or “distributes”
photographs and YouTube videos. As NPR reported, this isn’t just about animal activists: these bills put journalists at risk.

Who is behind this? Big Ag corporations, working with the American
Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC). ALEC has a model bill that labels
whistleblowers, investigators, and those who share the footage as
“terrorists.” You may be familiar with ALEC because this is the
same force behind many efforts to weaken environmental protections and
silence free speech online. If you care about safe food, environmental
and animal protection, transparency, workers’ rights, or
citizen-powered action, we need your voice!

Corporations want to use ALEC and “ag-gag” bills to keep the public
in the dark. But consumers have a right to make safe, healthy, and
humane decisions about what they buy.” Written by Will Potter.

“Please sign to tell ALEC to back off and stop criminalizing those who are trying to stop animal cruelty.”